American Ambassadors Live! Podcast

American Ambassadors Live! Podcast interviews foreign affairs experts and practitioners from the United States and around the world on their perspectives on critical international issues. View a full list of episodes on www.AmericanAmbassadorsLive.com.

 

      

Find our most recent podcasts on www.AmericanAmbassadorsLive.com

 


Robert Mugabe and Zimbabwe's New President, Emmerson Mnangagwa
Former U.S. Ambassador to Zimbabwe Tom McDonald joins podcast host Ambassador G. Philip Hughes to discuss Zimbabwe's former president, Robert Mugabe, and the country's new president, Emmerson Mnangagwa. Ambassador McDonald had over two dozen meetings with Mugabe and several engagements with Mnangagwa during his ambassadorial appointment. 


CAA Mission to Estonia, Lithuania and Poland
In these special American Ambassadors Live! Podcast episodes, Council members report on the fact-finding mission to Estonia, Lithuania and Poland they took this fall.
 
Estonia and Lithuania: Podcast host Ambassador Jim Rosapepe sits down with Ambassadors Aldona Wos and John Maisto to discuss the meetings they had with high-level officials in Estonia and Lithuania. Discussion topisc included Russian threats in the Baltics, cyber-security, the role of NATO and a desire for American presence in the Baltics.
Poland: Podcast host Ambassador G. Philip Hughes sits down with Ambassadors Laurie Fulton and Timothy Chorba to review the meeting they held with high-level officials in Poland. They talk about Polish security concerns as a NATO ally, Polish judicial reforms, the refugee crisis, religion and national identity, and Nord Stream 2 (and the potential for an alternative Baltic pipeline).


CAA Fall Conference in NYC
Listen in on the Council of American Ambassadors' latest conference! Featured guest speakers include Kati Marton, who spoke on threats to liberal democracy in Hungary; Ambassador Frank G. Wisner, who discussed power dynamic in the Middle East; Ambassador Winston Lord, who addressed tensions in US-China relations; and more. 


Interview with Ambassador Norman Eisen
Podcast host Ambassador Jim Rosapepe interviewed Ambassador Norman Eisen, who recently authored The Last Palace: Europe's Turbulent Century in Five Lives and One Legendary House. Ambassador Eisen served as U.S. Ambassdor to the Czech Republic from 2011 to 2014 and as Special Counsel to President Barack Obama. He is currently a senior fellow in Governance Studies at Brookings, a CNN political commentator and the chair of the government watchdog group CREW.

 

 


Interview with Ambassador Alfred Moses
Podcast host Ambassador Jim Rosapepe interviewed Ambassador Alfred Moses, who recently authored Bucharest Diary: Romania's Journey from Darkness to Light. Ambassador Moses served as U.S. Ambassador to Romania from 1994 to 1997 and as a Special Advisor to President Jimmy Carter. He is a distinguished corporate attorney and leader of the American Jewish community.
 

 


Interview with Ambassador Michael McFaul
Podcast host Ambassador Jim Rosapepe interviewed Ambassador Michael McFaul, who recently authored From Cold War to Hot Peace: An American Ambassador in Putin's Russia. Ambassador McFaul served as U.S. Ambassador to Russia under the Obama Administration. He currently serves as the Peter and Helen Bing Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution for International Studies at Stanford University. 

 


Interview with Ambassador C. Donald Johnson
Podcast host Ambassador Jim Rosapepe interviewed Ambassador C. Donald Johnson, who recently authored The Wealth of a Nation: A History of Trade Politics in America. Ambassador Johnson is the Director Emeritus of the Dean Rusk Center for International Law and a former United States Trade Representative.


 

Global Tour d'Horizon
For the first time ever, the Council of American Ambassadors has recorded select presentations for public listening from its Spring conference, "Global Tour d'Horizon." Listen to presentations by Dr. Steven A. Cook on Turkey's pivotal regional role, Ambassador Carla A. Hills on trade tensions, and Ambassador Roger F. Noriega on Latin America and disparities in Venezuela.

 


 

Interview with Ambassador Colleen B. Bell
Podcast host Ambassador Jim Rosapepe interviewed Ambassador Colleen B. Bell, who served as U.S. Ambassador to Hungary from 2015 to 2017 under President Barack Obama.

 

 


 

Interview with Ambassador Curtis S. Chin
Podcast host Ambassador Jim Rosapepe interviewed Ambassador Curtis S. Chin, who served as U.S. Ambassador to the Asian Development Bank under Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama. He is currently a Milken Institute Asia Fellow and trustee of World Education Services of New York.

 


 

Interview with Ambassador Eizenstat, author of President Carter: The White House Years
Podcast host Ambassador Jim Rosapepe interviewed Ambassador Stuart Eizenstat, who served as U.S. Ambassador to the European Union and Deputy Secretary of the Treasury under President Clinton. From 1977 to 1981, he was chief White House domestic policy advisor to President Jimmy Carter.

 


 

Interview with Ambassador Kevin O'Malley
Podcast host Ambassador Jim Rosapepe interviewed Ambassador Kevin O'Malley, who served as Ambassador to Ireland under President Obama.  He is a lawyer and a former federal prosecutor for the Department of Justice.

 


 

Interview with Ambassador Michael McFaul
Podcast host Ambassador Jim Rosapepe interviewed Ambassador Michael McFaul, who served as the US Ambassador to Russia from 2012-2014. Before becoming ambassador, he served for three years as a special assistant to the president for Russian and Eurasian Affairs at the National Security Council.  An author and news analyst, Ambassador McFaul is a senior fellow at the Hoover Institution and a professor of political science at Stanford University.

 


 

Interview with Ambassador Robert M. Orr
Podcast host Ambassador Jim Rosapepe interviewed Ambassador Robert M. Orr, who served as Ambassador to the Asian Development Bank under President Obama. A former President of Boeing Japan, Ambassador Orr is a published author who speaks German and Japanese fluently.

 


 

Interview with Ambassador Suzan Johnson Cook
Podcast host Ambassador Jim Rosapepe interviewed Ambassador Suzan Johnson Cook, who served as Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom under President Obama. The author of ten books, Ambassador Johnson Cook is an entrepreneur, professional speaker and faith leader.

 

 


 

Interview with Ambassador John Emerson
Podcast host Ambassador Jim Rosapepe interviewed Ambassador John Emerson, who was the US Ambassador to Germany from 2013 to 2017. A lawyer who worked in the White House for President Clinton and in the private sector, Ambassador Emerson is the recipient of the State Department’s Sue M. Cobb Award for Exemplary Diplomatic Service.

 


 

Interview with Ambassador Timothy Roemer
Podcast host Ambassador Jim Rosapepe interviewed Ambassador Timothy Roemer, who represented Indiana in Congress and served as US Ambassador to India under President Obama. Ambassador Roemer is an active member of the U.S. Association of Former Members of Congress.

 


 

Interview with Ambassador R. James Nicholson
Podcast host Ambassador Jim Rosapepe interviewed Ambassador R. James (Jim) Nicholson, a West Point graduate, who served as Secretary of Veterans Affairs and U.S. Ambassador to the Vatican under President George W. Bush.

 

 


 

Interview with Ambassador Hamdullah Mohib
Podcast host Ambassador Jim Rosapepe interviewed Afghanistan's Ambassador to the United States, Ambassador Hamdullah Mohib. Ambassador Mohib previously served as Deputy Chief of Staff to the Afghan President and led the team that developed Afghanistan's national "Realizing Self-Reliance" reform strategy. A published writer, he holds a Ph.D. from Brunel University in the United Kingdom.

 

 


 

Interview with Ambassador Jalil Abbas Jilani
Podcast host Ambassador Jim Rosapepe interviewed Pakistan's Ambassador to the United States, Ambassador Jalil Abbas Jilani. Ambassador Jilani previously served as Foreign Secretary of Pakistan from March 2012 through December 2013. A career diplomat, he has served as Ambassador of Pakistan to Belgium, Luxembourg and the European Union (2009-2012) and as Pakistan’s High Commissioner to Canberra, Australia (2007-2009).

 

 


 

Interview with Ambassador David Miller on National Security Council staff reform
Podcast host Ambassador G. Philip Hughes interviewed David Miller. Ambassador Miller served as United States Ambassador to Tanzania from 1981-1984 and as Ambassador to Zimbabwe from 1984-1986. He also was Special Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs on the National Security Council Staff at the White House.

 


 

Interview with Ambassador Martin Lousteau on the U.S.-Argentina bilateral relations, U.S. investment in Argentina's economy and Argentina's perspective on the re-establishment of U.S.-Cuba relations
Podcast host Ambassador Jim Rosapepe interviewed Argentina's Ambassador to the United States, Martin Lousteau. Ambassador Lousteau previously served as the Minister of Economy and Production of Argentina and as Minister of Production in the Province of Buenos Aires. He is a former columnist for La Nación newspaper and the author of four books, including the bestseller, Economía 3D.

 


 
Interview with Ambassador Edward Gabriel on Syria, the Middle East, Morocco, and Migration
Podcast host Ambassador Jim Rosapepe interviewed CAA member Edward M. Gabriel. Ambassador Gabriel has an extensive background in international affairs, having convened multilateral policy forums involving national security, environmental, and trade and energy issues. He has been involved in matters of Russian and European nuclear non-proliferation and safety, and he has been active in advising the US Government on Mideast policy matters. From 1997 to 2001, he was the US Ambassador to the Kingdom of Morocco during which time a new US-Morocco strategic relationship was launched on political, military and economic levels.

 


 

Interview with Ambassador Roman Macaya on Costa Rica's Unique History, Climate Change, and Migration
Podcast host Ambassador Jim Rosapepe interviewed Dr. Roman Macaya, the current Ambassador of Costa Rica to the United States. Ambassador Macaya has developed a multidisciplinary career as a scientist, businessman, advocate, politician, and academic. Ambassador Macaya has lived, studied, and worked for many years in both Costa Rica and the United States. As a chemist and biochemist by training, Ambassador Macaya has led R&D teams in the fields of biotechnology and biomedical research, worked in the health care sector, and been involved in Costa Rican politics. Ambassador Macaya holds an MBA in Health Care Management from the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania, a Ph.D. in Biochemistry from UCLA, and a B.A. in Chemistry from Middlebury College.
Interview with Ambassador Lars Gert Lose on the EU, Refugees, and the US Presidential Election
Podcast host Ambassador Jim Rosapepe interviewed Ambassador Lars Gert Lose, the current Danish Ambassador to the US. Prior to arriving in Washington, Ambassador Lose was the Permanent Under-Secretary of State, where he served as Chief Adviser on Foreign Affairs to the Prime Minister. Ambassador Lose has had a long career within the Danish Foreign Ministry. He started his career in 1997 by becoming the Head of the EU Coordination Office. Since then, he has held a range of high-level positions within the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, such as Private Secretary to Minister for Foreign Affairs and Head of the Foreign Minister’s Office.

 

 


 

Interview with Ambassador Mark Brzezinski on the Challenges and Opportunities in the Arctic
Podcast host Ambassador Jim Rosapepe interviewed CAA member Ambassador Mark Brzezinski. Earlier this year, Ambassador Brzezinski was appointed by President Obama to serve as Executive Director of the United States’ Arctic Executive Steering Committee. Prior to that, Ambassador Brzezinski was the US Ambassador to Sweden. Under President Clinton, Ambassador Brzezinski served on the National Security Council staff, first as Director for Russia and Eurasia, and then as Director for the Balkans.

 

 


 

Interview with Ambassador James Smith on Saudi Arabia, the Iran Nuclear Deal, and ISIS
Podcast host Ambassador Jim Rosapepe interviewed CAA member Ambassador James Smith. Ambassador Smith was U.S. Ambassador to Saudi Arabia from 2009 to 2013 and now is the President of C&M International, an international policy consulting firm. He is a former U.S. Air Force brigadier general and F-15 fighter pilot who served in Operation Desert Storm. Ambassador Smith is a distinguished graduate of the U.S. Air Force Academy, the Naval War College, and the National War College, where he served as a professor of national security strategy.

 

 


 

Interview with Ambassador David O'Sullivan on Greece, TTIP, and the Iran Nuclear Deal
Podcast host Ambassador Jim Rosapepe interviewed Ambassador David O'Sullivan, the current Ambassador of the European Union to the United States. Prior to arriving in the United States, Ambassador O’Sullivan served as the Chief Operating Officer of the European External Action Service, the European Union’s diplomatic service. From 2005 to 2010, he was the Director General for Trade. Ambassador O’Sullivan started his career in the Irish Foreign Ministry and has a background in economics.

 


 

Interview with Ambassador John Maisto on Cuba, Latin America, and the United States
Podcast host Ambassador Jim Rosapepe interviewed Ambassador John Maisto. Ambassador Maisto was Ambassador to Nicaragua and Venezuela under President Clinton, and the National Security Council Senior Director for Latin America and Caribbean and Ambassador to the OAS under President George W. Bush. He was in the Foreign Service for 35 years and served in seven countries in Latin America and East Asia. He also served as Deputy Assistant Secretary for Central America.

 


 

Interview with Ambassador Donald McHenry on ISIS, Africa, and the crisis in Ukraine
Podcast host Ambassador Jim Rosapepe interviewed Ambassador Donald McHenry. Recently retired, Ambassador McHenry was a Professor in the Practice of Diplomacy in the Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University. Before teaching at Georgetown, Ambassador McHenry was the US Permanent Representative to the United Nations under Jimmy Carter. He has held a variety of positions in the State Department, as well as fellowships with the Brookings Institution and the Council on Foreign Relations.

 

 

 

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Disclaimer: Views expressed on this program are solely those of individual members and should not be construed as those of the Council's staff, executive leadership, membership as a whole, or individuals or organizations that provide financial support to the Council of American Ambassadors.